Knight for a Princess
by Ilyce V. Mairenne
Summary: Ishtar ponders on what she thought she wanted, and what her heart tells her she desires. A [fairly short] IshtarXDuzell oneshot told in two parts, for suspense only.
1. Part I

"Vampire Game" character, art, and plot are (c) Judal.  
This story, however, is (c) Ilyce V. Mairenne

Author's Note: It starts out with Ishtar just thinking over her relationship with Darres,  
but it is an IshtarxDuzell story.  
It's a one-shot, but it's split into two parts, and only for these reasons:  
1. Suspense purposes  
2. I feel the second half isn't up to scratch, and it will be worked on, and separated for now.

Read and review please!  
Comments on how to improve Part II would be very much appreciated!

* * *

**Knight for a Princess**

' The knight in shining armor saved the princess and they live happily ever after. '

_That's how fairytales go. I know that. That's how things are meant to be - were meant to be. And at some point in the story, the two declare their love for each other. It doesn't matter if that love wasn't there from the very beginning. At one point, there is a declaration of love, and after that, nothing can interfere with that love._

_That's how fairytales go. That's what princesses are meant for. _

_But... is it the same for a queen?_

Ishtar slammed the book shut, putting it aside. It had been too long since she'd glanced at those childish tales. It had been too long since she'd believed in those silly stories, and dreamt of her own happily ever after.

And even though she was reading them in the moonlight again, the magic from before was entirely gone.

Careful not to disturb the kyawl sleeping soundly beside her - _really, Duzie can be such a kyawl at times! Some king of the undead..._ - the restless princess slipped gently from between the covers, tiptoeing to the window. Too much noise and Darres was bound to come charging in, wondering what had happened. _He really is paranoid sometimes._

But looking at the closed - and locked, and watched, and guarded, and spelled - door, a genuine smile slipped across her face.

_But I don't mind in the least. He is my knight after all._

_It's just... Am I still his princess?_

_More importantly, do I still _want_ to be his princess?_

She shook her head, as though trying to clear it of the thoughts that refused to leave her alone those past few days. Trying to replace the reoccurring image with the eyes she had believed she wanted to see...

_A knight is meant for a princess. And a princess is meant only for a knight. That's just the way life works. I wouldn't have it any other way._

_Darres is my knight and I am his princess. That's just the way our life is. And I don't want it to change. Ever._

_I see now that I mistook his love for duty, but he does his duty with affection. Perhaps not exactly the same affection I feel for him, but still. He cares for me. He's always cared for me. Since I was a little girl. And he's been beside me all that time. And from that care, love can emerge. How can I possibly let any stranger take his place in my heart?_

_I love him, after all. I know I do. That's why whenever I think that he doesn't love me, it hurts..._

A hand unconsciously reached for her heart, as though to subdue the heart-ache, that painful, crushing feeling...

...that wasn't there.


	2. Part II

_But of course that isn't possible. I know the feeling too well. How can such a strong pain possibly disappear?_

A puzzled frown replaced the smile, and flustered green eyes turned to the celestial bodies, as though turning to them for an answer. Her heart seemed to skip a beat, and a worry, like an anxiety, festered in her mind. Like a bad thought that refused to go away, a nightmare that refused to end, a lie...

...now revealed to be the truth.

_I knew the pain had faded, the more I accepted it, but I'd placed it to be simply to be because I'd had little time to dwell in sorrow. Because I was busy. Because I wasn't focusing on it. Because I had other things on my mind. Because I was trying to make the pain less bearable. Because... Because..._

_But the pain was there! I know it was. I never thought it had actually receded, just the sensation of it. And never... ever... gone..._

Yet it was. Try and search as she did, Ishtar could find no trace of the emotion that had stung like an unhealed wound. No trace. No clue. Not even a shadow. As though all the 'stab' was, was a papercut.

A queer, calm emptiness took its place.

As though she'd finally waken, after sleeping in dreams for a long time. As though her eyes were finally open. As though everything before that moment had happened to someone else. As though... she'd been born again, but right this time.

Born in the light this time, instead of the darkness. Born seeing this time, instead of blind.

_Could it be? Could things really have changed so quickly? Could my... heart have... turned, so quickly?_

_Maybe... Maybe it was there all a long, and I've simply been searching for reasons to ignore that feeling. Searching for distractions so that the space, now there... So that I wouldn't have to admit... That my feelings have changed..._

_I still love him. Darres. I can feel it in the way he makes me feel warm inside, even if I have to escape first in order to induce it. But, I guess, that love has... changed._

_Softened._

_Is that because... I..._

_As a princess, I thought I needed a knight. I thought I wanted a knight. But perhaps, just perhaps..._

Ishtar turned to look at the sleeping ball of fur on her bed. On the first person - _if I can call Duzie that_ - that she had been able to freely show affection for. Affection that ran... how deep...

_A knight is for a princess. _

_But a queen... needs a king._

* * *

The End. 

- Again, on the list to be revise (though whether I get to it or not is another thing). Any suggestions would be very much appreciated! Thanks! -


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